Yambeta language

Yambeta or Nigi[3] is a Southern Bantoid language of Cameroon.

Yambeta
Native toCameroon
Native speakers
(3,700 cited 1982)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3yat
Glottologyamb1252
A.462[2]

Phonology

There are 20 contrastive consonants in Yambeta.

Consonants
Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Stop p t t͡ʃ k ʔ
Prenasalized Voiceless ⁿt ⁿk
Voiced ⁿb ⁿd ⁿg
Fricatives f s h
Nasals m n ɲ ŋ
Approximants l j w

The glottal stop occurs only in word-final position and is elided intervocalically. All other consonants, except /t͡ʃ/ and /w/ as well as the prenasalized stops, may be word-final. All stops are voiceless word-initial and word-final, and voiced intervocalically or following a nasal.

There are two vowel sets in Yambeta. The most common noun syllable structure is CVC.[4]

+ATR -ATR
Front Mid Back Front Mid Back
Short Long Short Long Short Long Short Long Short Long Short Long
Close ɪ ɪː ʊ ʊː i iː u uː
Close-mid ə əː o oː
Open-mid ɔ ɔː
Open a aː

References
  1. Yambeta at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  3. Binam Bikoi, Charles, ed. (2012). Atlas linguistique du Cameroun (ALCAM) [Linguistic Atlas of Cameroon]. Atlas linguistique de l'Afrique centrale (ALAC) (in French). Vol. 1: Inventaire des langues. Yaoundé: CERDOTOLA. ISBN 9789956796069.
  4. Boyd, V. L. (2015). The phonological systems of the Mbam languages of Cameroon with a focus on vowels and vowel harmony (pp. XVIII+-394). Utrecht: LOT.


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